Developing a Health and Demographic Surveillance System for Oyo State

Health and Demographic Surveillance Systems provide longitudinal data on vital events and health outcomes in defined geographic areas that cross-sectional surveys cannot capture, and designing one for Oyo State would provide South West Nigeria with a valuable continuous demographic monitoring platform. This study designed a Health and Demographic Surveillance System for Oyo State, drawing on experience from the Agincourt HDSS in South Africa, the Navrongo HDSS in Ghana, and the Ibadan HDSS prototype operated by the University of Ibadan. A professional design methodology was applied, incorporating structured consultations with 15 Oyo State health officials and university researchers, site assessments in three candidate HDSS areas (Atisbo, Afijio, and Oluyole LGAs), and review of INDEPTH Network HDSS design guidelines. The HDSS design specifies a target population of 100,000 persons, a core data module covering births, deaths, cause of death (VA), migrations, marriages, and census updates, specialist modules for maternal health and infectious disease surveillance, and a digital data capture system using Open Health Information Mediator. Sample size calculations, round frequencies, and supervisory structures are detailed. Expert review by nine HDSS design and operations specialists confirmed the design's technical adequacy. Recommendations include establishing the HDSS as a joint University of Ibadan-Oyo State Ministry of Health project, pursuing INDEPTH Network membership, and securing Wellcome Trust or BMGF funding for operational costs.

Keywords: health and demographic surveillance, HDSS, Oyo State, longitudinal data, vital events